


support system

by Changeling



Category: Homestuck
Genre: Ableist Language, Alternate Universe - No Sburb/Sgrub Sessions, Delusions, First Period, Fluff, Gender Dysphoria, Genderfluid Character, Genderfluid Dave, Hospitals, Menstruation, Mental Health Issues, Mental Illness, Other, POV Third Person, Pale Romance | Moirallegiance, Paranoia, Past Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Trans Character, genderfluid rose
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-07-24
Updated: 2016-07-24
Packaged: 2018-07-26 09:13:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,643
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7568548
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Changeling/pseuds/Changeling
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"They'll take the kids away," he said, gasping like all the oxygen in the room had disappeared. "I can't let that happen, I can't protect them if they're not here." </p><p>"No they won't, I promise I won't let them. Dirk. Please," Roxy said. She rested her rifle against her shoulder. She took one step towards him.</p><p>"A crazy dad and a former alcoholic of a mom, and you don't think they'll take them away," he said, practically snarling at her.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. chapter 1: the man bunker

**Author's Note:**

> i was rereading dialogue between dave and dirk near the finale and it made me so sad that dave felt so hated and unwanted so this is my remedy to that. i have no idea how long this will be because i didn't start out with a plot or a plan.
> 
> dave and rose are dfab & genderfluid, and john and jade are dmab (not they're mentioned much so far, but it's part of jake's complete confusion of how to have "the talk"). 
> 
> thanks to my partner for beta-reading.  
> ♢/<3

Dave's bro had been a bit off his whole life. Everyone who knew him, at least closely, was aware if not used to it. Those who didn't, well, blamed it on arrogance, aloofness, wealth, nearly anything but the truth. His closest friends knew well Dirk strongly believed the apocalypse was coming. And damned if he wasn't gonna make sure Dave was prepared for it.

Rose too, to a lesser extent. But Roxy had stepped in before she'd gotten too deep into psychoanalyzing him. The last thing anyone needed was her playing kid psychiatrist on him when he was actively delusional. He loved her to bits and entertained her questioning with vigor, right up until his rescue. 

Dave, for his part, thought it was a cool bonding ritual, a way to be more like his Bro. And as long as Bro didn't go too far, it was kind of a positive thing for them both in small doses. The kid wasn't weak, but he was shy, nervous, and reminded Dirk of himself in too many ways.

Major but immediate rules that Roxy laid out: absolutely no strifing, roughhousing, or fighting with real weapons. Dirk fought this hard, but until they were old enough to drive, no real weapons. Exceptions were made with enough arguing between Dirk and Roxy; he could teach both kids how to handle weapons safely, and use them against training dummies. It's not like Roxy didn't see the use in the kids knowing how to defend themselves, but, Dirk needed some hard limits.

At night or when the kids were away at friends', Roxy and Dirk would practice strifing with each other. He insisted it kept him on his toes, but it obviously was more about release. Around anyone but Roxy, he was strung like barbed wire around a hand grenade; it was all but guaranteed, barring miracles, that something would go wrong. With Roxy, all his crazy could come out, and he knew she could handle it, and she'd bring him back from the precipice. He'd done the same for her many times, even if she'd given up drinking years ago. Her doubts over being a good enough parent always hovered on the edges of her subconscious, ready to swallow her up at the first sign of weakness.

It wasn't until the kids were 13 did they find out the truth behind Dirk's mannerisms. Dave was far too enamored with his dad-bro's "cool persona" to ever question it as more than some double-reacharound ironic presentation. Meanwhile, Rose was convinced he was merely leading her on, after her case study on Jaspers ended disastrously (Who knew cats could be such ungrateful patients? All her files on him ended up as impromptu litter paper).

The two were supposed to have been spending the night at John and Jade's house, when Grandpa Harley had to take Dave home for some "Strider hygienic products." Naturally, Rose tagged along, trying to convince Dave he wasn't actually going to die from bloodloss, while Jake blushed heavily, fidgeting with his mustache. He was totally unprepared to give The Talk at 9 PM at night to four 13 year olds; wasn't that what school was for anyway? When they pulled into the driveway, Grandpa Harley insisted on waiting anxiously in the foyer, while Rose and Dave tore apart the bathroom cupboards. No menstrual pads in here, time to check Mom's bathroom.

Dave was still rubbing tears from his eyes onto his hoodie's sleeves when they crossed by the basement door. Normally it was locked, and as the sign said "No Kids Allowed (in the man bunker <3)" it was off-limits. The pink marker addition was from Roxy, naturally, who always said "Time for the maaaaaaaan bunker" when Dirk got too riled up. Rose felt Dave's hand slip out of hers, as he came to a halt in front of the half opened door.

"Dave, you know perfectly well that's not the bathroom, so don't start claiming you're having blood loss induced amnesia," Rose said. His hand pulled back from the door knob.

"I thought I heard Bro shouting down there," Dave said, sniffling.

"Uh, of course? What else is a soundproof bunker for?" Rose said, pulling on his arm. She was taller of the two, but Dave weighed more and so she wasn't going to move him unless he wanted to.

"...I heard him shouting at _Mom _," Dave said. "You don't think they're gonna get a divorce, d'you?" Rose laughed, and he snuffled louder, tears welling up again.__

"They'd have to be married in the first place," Rose said. "Come on already, before you stain your pants." He shrugged her hand off him, and threw the door open before she could react.

" _Dave _, you're going to get in _so _much trouble! Do you want to be grounded for ten trillion years?" He was already on the fourth step. "Bro'll take away your computer or your turntables, you realize that?" He couldn't make out the words, but he could hear Mom shouting back at Bro. A crash of metal against metal startled them both, and before Rose knew what she was doing, she was pulling her brother down the stairs by the hand.____

"- They're going to _die _, Roxy! Don't you get it?"__

The usual cheerfulness in Mom's voice was gone, replaced by something hard and terse. "Ya know how many times you've told me this by now?"

"How many?" Dirk sounded exhausted, and Rose thought it must've been days since he'd slept. He'd been down here all week except for dinner time with the family.

"We've had this exact conversation almost 10,000 times since the kids were born. If you want the exact numbers, last I counted it was 9,852 times not including this week," she said. It sounded like the same voice she put on anytime she had a phone call with colleague, the sort of cold, mechanical tone of a fact-spitting machine, who just wanted the other party to shut up so she could get off the phone.

"In case you're not following along, that's 9,582 times _nothing _happened to them."__

Rose and Dave hid on the third to last step, their view of their parents blocked by paint cans sitting on the stairway's cheap shelving. Another violent crash of metal, and Dirk had jumped into view. His hair was usually perfect, full of intention, and every loc slicked upward. But today his locs fell into his face, covering his eyes; Rose could see some of the smaller locs were unraveling, like he hadn't bothered with any kind of upkeep. He wore the same rumpled and stained clothes he had all week, like he'd just rolled out of bed and around on the floor for a few hours. Maybe he had, it's not like she knew what her father got up to down here.

Dirk's head jerked, and the butt end of Roxy's rifle slammed into the empty air where he had been. Roxy's back was to the kids, and neither could make out her emotions from her body language; she was more unreadable than Bro was right now. He stood five feet away from her now, his back against the concrete walls, and right next to an enclosed display of some of his swords. He slouched, looking like he was on the brink of collapse despite Roxy missing him entirely.

Rose could feel her brother leaning on her back harder, as he craned his neck to see what was going on. The more weight he put on her, the more off-balanced she felt, crouching on the stairs with only one hand to support her. The other hand was being squeezed until it tingled by Dave. She had half a mind to turn around and tell him off, but Dirk raised his head and she froze.

"Dirk, it's just getting worse. I know you don't want to, and you don't trust doctors, but I think there isn't much else _I_ can do for you without some kind of medical intervention. At _least_ go in for just one teensy eensy weensy interview?" Roxy's normal voice seemed to have returned, even if it still sounded tense.

"They'll take the kids away," he said, gasping like all the oxygen in the room had disappeared. "I can't let that happen, I can't protect them if they're not here." 

"No they won't, I promise I won't let them. Dirk. Please," Roxy said. She rested her rifle against her shoulder. She took one step towards him.

"A crazy dad and a former alcoholic of a mom, and you don't think they'll take them away," he said, practically snarling at her. She jerked back, her rifle back in defense position in a second. He tipped his head up a little more to meet her eyes, and said, "I'm sorry, that was fucked up of me. You're such a good mom, Rox, like I don't even know you manage with me fucking things up every week."

"Oh my god, you enormous dumbass, you're not fucking things up! You know how much the kids love you. _I_ love you, no romo, dude. Dave practically wants to be you, and Rose loves talking to you about this shit in your head, like. Like you blow her mind with all these theories, and facts, and just _stuff_ , and god does she ask hard questions, and you just. You're a good dad, so shut the fuck up," Roxy said. Her voice was loud, almost like she was holding herself back from shouting, but it was the warm, affectionate tones she usually spoke in, and both kids felt a little more relaxed.

"...Rox, that's another thing," he started.

"What?"

"He wants to be like me. And I can see it in him. He'll know things he shouldn't. It's the last thing I want for him, I don't want him to be fucked up by things that don't happen but do happen, I don't-" Dirk was on his knees now, sobbing and struggling to keep his voice clear. His sword clattered to the ground and Dave jumped, pushing Rose further off her feet until she tipped over, and down the last three steps.


	2. chapter 2: brain goo

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> By the time they came back, Jake was back to standing anxiously in the foyer, while Dirk had sort of attempted to dress himself. At least he was wearing a different shirt and a brimmed hat tipped low over his face. He held Rose’s hand tight, like she was the only anchor to the earth he had.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i don't know how to write jake at all whooops
> 
> why does roxy have one of those fancy doctor's lights if she's not a medical doctor; well, it's easier to bring the doctor to dirk than it is to bring dirk to a doctor. she's probably got lots of random medical equipment because of him.

She cried out when her head hit pavement and Dave stifled a scream, but both Mom and Bro were on them in an instant.

"Oh my _god_! What have I told you about being down here!" Roxy said. 

Dirk was picking Rose up gently, and up close she could see how tired and thinned his face looked. Through his dark lenses, his eyes were bloodshot and hooded, like he was barely awake. He brushed her hair aside, and checked her head with the flat of his thumb, feeling for a bruise. She winced as he passed over a cut, just starting to bleed, and he jumped past Roxy and over Dave huddled on the stairs to the first floor.

Roxy was quick to follow, carrying Dave over her shoulder while he cried about how it was "my fault, she's gonna die, her big dumb brain's gonna be all scrambled on the concrete and now she'll never get into a good college, and you'll have just a shitty kid, and the perfect prep kid he wrecked." She pet the back off his head with one hand, whispering into his ears how "it'll be ok, Mommy promises."

On the first floor, Jake had already hustled to the bathroom where Dirk was checking Rose's head. He stood in the doorway, awkwardly filling most of the space, and babbling at Dirk many garbled apologies blended together. Rose sat on the toilet, with Dirk holding a box of bandages and a bottle of antiseptic, asking her how she felt and if she could remember her name, to smile at him, and tell him today's date.

Roxy pushed Jake out of the way, still babbling, while Dave was crying into her shoulder and snapped Dirk out of his barrage of questions just as he started asking her how many fingers he was holding up.

"Oh my god Dirk, she fell down three steps, she didn't have an aneurysm," Roxy said, exasperation edging in her voice.

"You should take this seriously!" Dirk said, raising his voice to nearly a shout. Rose and Dave startled in unison.

"I _am_ but you're just going to scare them both even more, so stop yelling at me," Roxy said. She handed Dave over to Dirk who sat down with him on the edge of the tub, and put an arm over his shoulder. Dave clung to his shirt, getting tears and snot all over it, to which Dirk merely shrugged. It had plenty of stains as it was.

Roxy left the room, instructing Jake to sit with Rose and just talk to her for a few minutes, to which he just vigorously shook his head and awkwardly crouched next to her. He kept his head low, avoiding Dirk's gaze, and told her she was going to be totally ok, over and over again. Rose felt more like she should be the one reassuring him. Roxy came back shortly with a medical kit, and armed with a small flashlight like the kind doctors used.

"Okay baby, now, stare at the wall behind Mommy, and I'm gonna look at your eyes," she told Rose. She passed the flashlight across her face quickly, several times, and seemed satisfied. 

"We should take her to the hospital, right?" Jake croaked. In an instant he seemed to shrivel up under Dirk's gaze.

"Absolutely n-" Dirk started, jumping to his feet. 

"You're right Jake, just let me get her a bandage and we'll all go together!" Roxy said. Dirk staggered back, biting his lip so hard Jake thought he was going to open up and tear him to pieces with his teeth.

“We can’t-” Dirk tried again.

“Sure we can, it’ll be ok, Dirky,” Roxy said, with a pat to his shoulder. An unspoken warning to leave it alone. Dave huddled on the edge of the tub, pleading with his eyes at his sister, before Rose spoke up.

“Mom, Dave needs to… change first, that’s why Grandpa brought us over,” Rose said. Dave clutched his knees and tried to shrink himself until he could hide in his clothes. Everyone’s eyes were on him for the first time since they got here, and he shuddered under their gaze. Obviously they were all judging him; what had he done, wet himself? At age 13, like weak little baby?

Dirk and Roxy looked at each other for a moment, while Jake cleared his throat nervously. They came to the same understanding in a second and Roxy crouched down next to him and offered him her hand. 

“I’m so sorry baby, I didn’t know! Come on, it’ll be ok, I promise,” Roxy said. She led him out of the bathroom and down the hall to her bedroom. When they were safely behind her door, she stopped and turned around to face him. “I’m so sorry honey, I promise to make it up to you once we make sure Rosie’s ok.” She bent down to give him a hug, and he buried his face in her neck, a flood of tears dripping down his face.

By the time they came back, Jake was back to standing anxiously in the foyer, while Dirk had sort of attempted to dress himself. At least he was wearing a different shirt and a brimmed hat tipped low over his face. He held Rose’s hand tight, like she was the only anchor to the earth he had.

“I, uh, should get back home post-haste. Let Nanna know what transpired so she doesn’t rile herself up in worry. You know how feisty she gets. I’m, um, really sorry,” Jake said, halfway to the door already. Dirk stared a hole into the wall opposite of Jake, trying to swallow his fears that the doctors would steal Rose away from him. He held her hand tighter.

“It’s alright Jake, thanks for taking care of the kids for a few hours. I’ll call you or Jane as soon as we know what’s up,” Roxy said with a smile. 

“Of course, thank you Roxy,” he said, and scuttled out the door before Dirk had a chance to say anything to him. “Don’t worry about the time, we’re early birds anyhow.”

“Have a good night, Jake!” She replied.

Roxy herded the kids to her car, with Dirk following quietly. He held a jacket tight in his hands. Roxy unlocked the car doors and Dave and Rose climbed in the back.

“Hey,” Dirk said, “Make room back there?” The kids looked to their mom then back to Dirk and shrugged. He squeezed into the middle seat and held onto both his kids’ hands tight. Roxy adjusted the car’s mirror and glanced back at them all. Dirk looked like he was about to break into a cold sweat, his lips were chewed up, and he couldn’t stopped his leg from bouncing up and down.

“Bro?” Dave said quietly. Dirk turned his head a few centimeters toward him, stiff as freshly starched clothing. “Rose’s gonna be ok, yeah?” 

He took a moment, licking his lips, before he answered, “Yeah, she’s gonna be fine.” Dave relaxed back into the car’s seat, reassured and exhausted. His eyes were almost as red as Dirk’s now, and puffy from so much crying. He leaned against Dirk gently and closed his eyes.

Dirk’s head turned to look at Rose; she was sitting calmly with one hand in her lap, the other holding his hand just as fiercely. Her eyes flicked over and to him, it seemed like she was more worried about him than herself. Maybe she really was. He hadn’t been near a doctor or hospital for five years. Did she know? She had reason to fear for him. Did she know? Had he told her too much under the guise of playing patient, or was she…

“You ok back there?” Roxy said. He met her eyes in the reflection of the mirror for a moment. 

“In my head,” he mumbled. She laughed a little.

“I could tell that much,” she said. He shook his head and leaned forward. Dave slowly slid down the backseat until he jerked awake again.

“No, Rox, _in_ my head,” he said, eyes wide behind his glasses. Rose looked up at him with a frown.

“Whooooo’s in your head, bro?” she called, sing-songy. Dirk rolled his eyes at her, and her face in the mirror crinkled into a smile. He nodded his head just slightly toward Rose. “Oh man, Dirk, come on. She might be concussed, not psychic.”

He leaned back, and resisted the urge to cross his arms because it meant letting go of the kids. Rose took her other hand and poked him in the shoulder.

“I don’t know what’s going on-” she started.

“That’s concussions for you darling!” Roxy said.

“-But you’re ok. I’m ok,” she finished, and squeezed his hand a little tighter. “And I’m not concussed. We don’t need to go to the hospital, Mom.”

“Yeah,” Dave chimed in. “The hospital don’t need to see the Boy With a Period y’know?”

“Baby, no one’s gonna know you have your period,” Roxy said. Dirk let go of Dave’s hand long enough to pat him on the head, and grabbed his hand again before he knew it was released.

“Y’sure, because I feel like I’m wearing a fu-- freaking diaper here, and you know doctors. They’re bloodhounds; literally, I bet you they could smell blood a mile away,” Dave said, quickly backtracking with a look from both Mom and Bro.

“Then they’ll be smelling so much blood they won’t know who’s got their period, Dave, it’s a hospital,” Rose said. “For all they know, Bro has _his_ period.” Dirk actually snorted at that, trying to hold back a laugh. Dave glared at her from around Dirk and tried to swat at her until Dirk gave him The Look. He quietly retreated to the other side of the seat, and stared wistfully at the dark forest outside the window. 

“It’s not a big deal darling, I promise,” Roxy said, trying to redirect the conversation as far away from doctors as possible. “And regardless, you need to make sure your brain’s alright. I refuse to clean up brain goo at,” she glanced at the car’s digital clock, “10:40 at night.”

“Ewww, brain goo,” Dave muttered. “Do you think they sell brain goo?”

“The internet sells everything, Dave,” Rose answered. She could hear him rummaging around in his pockets, clearly eager to find out until he let loose a groan.

“What? What is it?” Dirk and Roxy said almost in unity.

“I left my phone at home,” he said with despair. “God what am I gonna do all night? They better have comfy couches or I’m gonna backflip off a gurney on some poor dead dude’s head.” Dirk sighed, releasing both kid’s hands and got his phone out of his jeans pocket to unlock it.

“Here, please, for the love of what sanity I have, see if you can max out infinite data for me,” Dirk said, tossing the phone Dave’s way. He caught it with two hands, his face lit up by both the phone and a smile. “We’ll call it, data mining.” That earned him a guffaw from Roxy who instantly told him that wasn’t what data mining was, even though she knew that he knew.

Dirk shoved his hands in his pockets, feeling like he’d probably bruised Rose’s hand by now. It wasn’t his kids’ responsibility to comfort him. He sighed. Next thing he knew, Dave was leaning heavily against him, legs pulled up onto the seat, and Rose had wrapped one arm around his. He _so_ didn’t deserve these kids; clearly they got everything from Roxy.

**Author's Note:**

> dirk doesn't have a man cave, he has a man bunker


End file.
